Rev. William Gerhardt of Martinsburg, oldest Lutheran minister in U.S., lived to be 100

When the Rev. William Gerhardt of Martinsburg died a few months after his 100th birthday in 1917, he was the oldest Lutheran minister in the U.S.

He came to Martinsburg for a new job as principal of the grade school in 1867. This was the Third Ward School, which later became John Street School, according to the Berkeley County Historical Society.